


Thomas Dursley

by lemonchase



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Dudley Dursley's son is a wizard, Dudley is afraid of magic, Gen, Hogwarts Letters, Kid Fic, POV Dudley Dursley, asking for help, talking about magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:48:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28394151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonchase/pseuds/lemonchase
Summary: Dudley’s son receives a certain letter on his eleventh birthday. Not knowing what to do, Dudley asks Harry for help.Will Dudley overcome his fear of magic?
Relationships: Dudley Dursley & Dudley Dursley's son, Dudley Dursley & Harry Potter, Harry Potter & Dudley Dursley's son
Kudos: 65





	1. Chapter 1

Dudley nervously wrings his hands and stares at the two letters on the table in front of him. Both of them look crinkly and like they will fall apart any second. Strictly speaking, he could have thrown them away since Dudley knows their content by heart by now, which means a lot. Dudley doesn't have a good memory. Dazed, he shakes his head. If someone had told him that he'd get intimidated by a piece of paper back when he was a teenager, he would have laughed his ass off.

_But it isn't paper, is it? It's parchment._

Dudley takes a deep breath and picks up his son's Hogwarts letter. Dudley's whole world had turned upside down when it arrived on Thomas's eleventh birthday. It had taken him a week to come to terms with the fact that this will fundamentally change their lives. Then he sat down to write a letter to his cousin. He knows that he will need Harry's help with this. Hell, he doesn't even know where he's supposed to buy all those school things Thomas will need for his first school year.

Dudley throws the letter back onto the table and grabs the other. Biting his lips, he reads it once again.

_Dudley,_

_I'll drop by on Saturday, at 3 p.m._

_Harry_

Dudley doesn't know what to make of this. It's really impersonal and even shorter than Dudley's letter was. But most importantly, Harry didn't _ask_ him whether he could come on Saturday. He only _informed_ Dudley when and where they will meet. Dudley thinks he might have somehow offended Harry with his letter.

He doesn't know how, though. Sure, his letter was very short, and he didn't put a lot of effort into it. But that's only because Harry doesn't expect him to use big words, and Dudley didn't know what else there was to say other than that he needs Harry's help. Maybe he should have put more effort into writing it, after all. But it's too late for that now. Agitated, Dudley throws Harry's letter onto the table as well. His eyes flicker back to Thomas's Hogwarts letter.

Of course, he remembers very clearly how Harry received the very same letter over twenty years ago. They had even fled from their home because Dudley's parents refused to let Harry read it. And that giant had given him that bloody pigtail. Dudley still doesn't know to this day how his parents explained that to the doctors who removed it. Not that he is curious enough to ask his parents. They still don't like the mention of magic and refuse to talk about it unless it can't be avoided.

Nonetheless, he can't help but feel uneasy every time he thinks about receiving that pigtail. It's just scary to know that there are people out there with powers he can't do a thing against. People who can do whatever they want to him without having to face any consequences. After all, they can change their victim's memory if they go too far and are in danger of being found out, right? That's what they did with aunt Marge after Harry blew her up when he was thirteen.

Knowing that his son is supposed to be one of those people with these dangerous abilities is frightening.

_Damn. Am I seriously afraid of my own son?_

Dudley feels sick. He doesn't want to deal with this, but he knows he can't just ignore it. If he does that, they will send more letters like they did when Harry was a kid.

Looking back, it seems a bit silly that Dudley never even considered the possibility that his son might be like Harry. Dudley is related to a witch and a wizard, after all. His cousin Harry and his aunt Lily. It's not so hard to believe that he could be related to another person with magical abilities. But on the other hand, why should he have? His son never did any of the strange things Harry tended to do when he was a child. His hair didn't grow out unnaturally fast, and he never vanished glass in a zoo, either.

No, Thomas never did anything unexplainable, at least not to his knowledge. Dudley frowns. Could it be that he had simply been blind to that? That there had been things that couldn't be explained with logic, that Dudley had chosen to ignore? Dudley thinks hard for a second. Well. There had been that one time when Thomas fell off his bike and somehow managed to only got a couple of bruises. Dudley had thought that they just got lucky back then, but now he isn't so sure about that anymore.

Suddenly the bell rings, and Dudley flinches so hard that he almost falls off his chair. His eyes immediately flicker towards his watch. Harry is ten minutes too early. He takes a deep breath and stands up. Then he goes to the door, hoping that Harry won't notice how nervous he feels.


	2. Chapter 2

Dudley blinks. Harry looks different than he did when he was a teenager. His hair doesn't look quite as wild, and he has a confident aura around him, which makes Dudley feel even more nervous. The fact that Harry wears clothes that fit him doesn't help him calm down his nerves, either. It just reminds him that his cousin has more than enough reason not to want to be around him.

"Hello, Dudley," Harry says with an utterly neutral voice that Dudley doesn't know how to interpret at all. He almost wishes Harry would sneer at him. Then he would at least know what Harry thinks. This way, all he can do is speculate.

"Hello, Harry," Dudley responds. "Come in."

Harry steps in and looks around curiously while Dudley closes the door behind him.

"Can I see the letter?"

Dudley flinches. He somehow expected Harry to start with a bit of Smalltalk. After all, they haven't seen each other in over a decade. They exchanged letters from time to time, but not very regularly. Meeting face to face is entirely different, in Dudley's opinion. But he doesn't protest. If Harry wants to skip pleasantries, then so be it.

"Sure. Follow me," Dudley says and leads Harry into the living room. Dudley clears his throat uncomfortably as Harry walks straight up towards the living room table and picks up the Hogwart's letter.

"Do you want anything to drink?"

"No, thanks," Harry responds absentmindedly. Dudley sees Harry looking at the address on the envelope for a moment while sitting down on one of the chairs.

Dudley frowns. Does Harry think he's treating his son as bad as Dudley's parents treated Harry when he was a kid? That he is letting Thomas sleep in _the cupboard under the stairs_?

Dudley isn't stupid. He knows that his parents treated Harry wrong. So wrong, in fact, that it was nothing short of child abuse. Granted, Dudley needed a handful of years until he reached this conclusion, but better late than never. Looking back, Dudley feels ashamed of how he mistreated Harry himself. Dudley tried to talk about it with his parents a couple of times, but they refused to listen to him.

"We didn't have a choice," his mum once said. "We had to _try_ to suppress his freakishness."

That argument hadn't convinced Dudley. At the very least, they should have realized that their tactic didn't work when Harry got his Hogwarts letter.

Still frowning, Dudley walks around the table and sits down across from his cousin. Dudley plays with his wedding ring and watches as Harry's eyes flicker over the parchment. He wonders what his wife would say about all of this if she were still alive. Dudley smiles tiredly. She wouldn't have believed magic exists without some sort of demonstration.

Finally, Harry lays the letter to the side and looks up at Dudley.

"The letter is real if you were wondering about that."

Dudley exhales sharply. _Well, there went the small hope that all of this is a huge misunderstanding._

"Okay...and...what should I do now?"

Harry narrows his eyes. "Nothing," he says sharply. "Your son is a wizard. Neither you nor anyone else can change that."

"I didn't mean it like that," Dudley explains hastily. "I mean, how am I supposed to explain this to my son? Where do you buy all those strange school things? And what am I suppose to say if someone notices something _strange_ happening around Thomas?"

Harry visibly relaxes a bit after this explanation, even though he still seems a bit wary. _He doesn't trust me_ , Dudley realizes. Sure, Harry has more than enough reasons to be careful whenever magic and his relatives are involved, but Dudley still feels hurt. It looks like the letters they exchanged over the years weren't enough to convince him that Dudley has changed.

"You can buy everything your son will need for Hogwarts in Diagon Alley in London," Harry explains. "Since you aren't a wizard and your son doesn't have a wand yet, you won't get through the brick wall by yourself. I'll have to accompany you, but I was playing on doing that anyway."

Dudley tries not to let his confusion show too much. They will have to get through a brick wall? How is that supposed to work? But there are more important questions, so he refrains from asking. It looks like Harry will show them how it works, anyway. "If your son should ever accidentally use magic, the Ministry of Magic will take care of that. You didn't have any problems in that regard until now, right? I think I would have heard about that."

Dudley shakes his head, feeling dazed. There is a Ministry of Magic? And they will find out about it if Thomas uses magic? Pushing the thought to the side, for now, Dudley asks the question that has been nagging him ever since he saw the Hogwarts letter for the first time.

"And how am I supposed to explain all of this to him?" How is he supposed to explain something to his son that he doesn't even fully understands himself? Something he's afraid of, even? It all feels very much like a sick joke.

Harry narrows his eyes. "Have you showed him the letter already?"

"No! Of course not!"

"Why not?"

Dudley stares at his cousin uncomprehendingly. _Is he kidding me? Isn't it obvious why I didn't show it to Thomas?_ But since Dudley doesn't see one glimpse of malice or amusement in his cousin's face, it probably isn't a trick question.

"Because he'd ask me a thousand questions that I won't be able to answer," Dudley explains impatiently. "Why is he a wizard and his parents aren't? Why didn't I know that he is a wizard until now? What happens if he doesn't want to attend Hogwarts? Why is it a secret that witches and wizards exist? Are there any other magical beings? Werewolves? Elves? King Kong? Why -"

"Okay, I've got it," Harry interrupts him.

"Are you sure? I don't know how any of this works, and the Hogwarts letter didn't explain much. If I hadn't stayed in contact with you, I wouldn't have known what to do. Does this always work like this? Your people send normal people letters that don't make any sense to them?"

Harry frowns and narrows his eyes. " _Normal_ people?"


	3. Chapter 3

"You know what I mean," Dudley responds uneasily. Granted, he could have worded that better. It must have reminded Harry of his childhood when Dudley's parents kept calling Harry a freak. "I meant people without magical powers. People who don't know that witches and wizards exist."  
  
  
  
Harry nods and stops to think for a moment. "No, the normal procedure is different. Usually, a Hogwarts staff member visits the parents of muggle-born children to explain the situation to them."  
  
  
  
"Muggle-born children?" Dudley asks blankly. He's pretty sure that he has never heard the term before.  
  
  
  
"We call people without magical abilities muggles," Harry explains patiently. "People whose parents are muggles are called muggle-borns."  
  
  
  
"Hmpf," Dudley mutters and folds his arms. "You have a name for that? Why? Does it make that much of a difference whether you have a magical parent or not?"  
  
  
  
Harry grimaces. "Well, people just love to label things, don't they? No, it doesn't matter whether you're a muggle-born or not. It can give you a bit of an advantage sometimes, even. Having that outside perspective can be pretty useful. But..." Harry hesitates for a second. "I don't want to lie to you. There are some downsides to it as well. For example, muggle-born children are often sad that they can't tell their friends about the magical world. Only close family members are allowed to know that magic exists. And there is a small minority in the wizarding community that looks down on muggle-borns, saying that their blood is dirty and that they shouldn't be allowed to use magic."  
  
  
  
Dudley freezes. He honestly didn't expect that. He can somewhat understand his parent's point of view. It's terrifying to know that magic exists and that you can't protect yourself against it. But why would witches and wizards have a problem with muggle-borns? Dudley doesn't see the logic in that.  
  
  
  
"They are saying the blood of muggle-borns is dirty?"  
  
  
  
"Yeah, I know how stupid that sounds. But, as I said, it's only a small minority that thinks that way, and the prejudices have gotten a lot better in the last decade or so."  
  
  
  
And that's supposed to make it better? From what Dudley can tell, it sounds a whole lot like his son will have to deal with something akin to racism when he enters the magical world.  
  
  
  
Harry continues talking as if he hadn't just said something disturbing. "As to why you only got the Hogwarts letter, and no one came to explain the situation to you...I'm not entirely sure why they decided to do that. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you're my cousin. Maybe they thought that you know enough about the wizarding world through me already."  
  
  
  
Dudley snorts. Whoever was responsible for sending those letters has no idea what they are doing. Sure, he gained some insight into the magical world as a child and teenager, but that's it. He hasn't learned anything new about it since then.  
  
  
  
Dudley sits up straighter when he hears the front door opening.  
  
  
  
"I'm home!" Thomas yells.  
  
  
  
Dudley opens his mouth to respond when he feels Harry's eyes on him.  
  
  
  
"You should tell him now. There's no reason to keep putting it off."  
  
  
  
Dudley grimaces. If it were up to him, he'd never tell his son that he's a wizard. But from what he's gathered, magical children need to learn how to control their powers. At least he has Harry on his side right now, ready to answer all the questions Thomas might have.  
  
  
  
Dudley takes a deep, calming breath. "Thomas? Can you come here for a moment, please?"


	4. Chapter 4

They can hear Thomas taking off his jacket and then coming into the living room, dragging his feet. Usually, Dudley would have scolded him for not walking properly, but he's too nervous for that right now.

Dudley stands up and sees out of the corner of his eye that Harry does the same. "Thomas, this is my cousin Harry."

"Hello," Thomas says and looks at him curiously.

"Hello, Thomas. It's nice to finally meet you."

"I didn't know that you have a cousin, dad."

Dudley flinches, feeling guilty. It's true. He never told Thomas about Harry. He wouldn't have been able to tell Thomas why they aren't in each other's lives anymore, and he doesn't like lying to his son.

Harry glances at Dudley before focusing his attention on Thomas again. For a moment, Dudley wonders whether Harry told his children about Dudley. Judging from the look he just gave Dudley, he probably did.

"Your father had his reasons for never talking about me," Harry says evenly. "I guess he didn't want to lie to you...right?"

Dudley nods. It seems like Harry knows how his mind works.

Thomas frowns. "Why would he have to lie to me?" He asks, sounding confused. "And why have I never met you before? I think you weren't even at mum's funeral."

Dudley flinches again, and this time he sees Harry doing the same. It still startles him sometimes how openly his son talks about his mother's death. Dudley prefers to avoid the topic. It's just too painful to talk about, even years after her death.

"Your father and I haven't seen each other since we were teenagers," Harry explains hesitantly. He seems very careful not to say anything wrong. "I didn't want to intrude. That's why I didn't come to the funeral."

"But why did you decide to visit us _now_? What could be more important than mum's funeral?" Thomas keeps looking back and forth between Harry and Dudley, demanding an answer.

Dudley takes a deep breath. The moment of truth is here, and he knows that he has to explain it to his son himself. It seems too cowardly to leave that up to Harry.

"Harry isn't a normal person, Thomas. He's a wizard. He can do things that can't be explained with logic, like moving objects without touching them and willing things into existence and so on. I couldn't tell you that until now, so I decided never to mention him at all."

Dudley watches as his son's eyes widen almost comically. He looks very skeptical and doubtful, but there is also a fascination in his eyes when he turns to look at Harry. Dudley doesn't like that at all. Magic is dangerous. He's seen enough of it to know how much damage it can cause. As soon as Harry leaves, he will explain to his son that he will have to be careful not to hurt anyone accidentally. Somehow he doubts that Harry would be fine with him saying something like that in his presence.

"A...wizard? Is that a joke, dad?"

"No. It's not a joke."

Thomas frowns. "Why have you never told me about that?"

"Because I didn't have a good reason to. The general public isn't supposed to know about it."

"So why tell me now?" Thomas asks angrily and folds his arms. "Why not keep lying to me about it?"

"I didn't lie to you. I just didn't tell you about it. But I can't keep doing that." Dudley takes the Hogwarts letter and gives it to his son. "This arrived for you on your birthday."

Still looking angry, Thomas opens the letter and reads it. For a while, no one says anything. Then Thomas raises his head and stares at Dudley.

"So...I'm a wizard as well? And this really isn't a joke?"  
  
  
  
_At least he doesn't look angry anymore_ , Dudley thinks. _Though lost and overwhelmed isn't that much better._

"No, it isn't a joke," Dudley repeats as calmly as he can.

"But how can that be?" Thomas asks, uncomprehending. "I mean, you aren't a wizard, dad, right? And shouldn't I have noticed that I have magical abilities?"

Harry takes a step forward, and Dudley turns to look at him, hoping that he intends to help him with this. His cousin smiles tiredly. "I didn't know that I'm a wizard until I got my Hogwarts letter, either, Thomas. Don't worry. Many children don't know that they have magical abilities until their eleventh birthday. It isn't unusual at all."

"Really? How many witches and wizards are there? And do they all go to Hogwarts?"

Harry smiles and starts answering Thomas's questions. It quickly becomes apparent that Harry thinks very highly of Hogwarts. Dudley mostly just listens, and for the first time since the Hogwarts letter arrived, he allows himself to relax.

Finally, he told his son that he's a wizard, and Thomas even accepted it without making a big fuss about it.


	5. Chapter 5

Dudley just finished making them some tea when Harry says. "You see, Hogwarts is very far from being a normal school, Thomas."

"You can call me Tom if you want."

For some reason, Harry grimaces. "Um...well, if you don't mind, I'd rather stick with Thomas."

"Oh, okay," Thomas mutters disappointedly. He usually only allows people he respects or likes to call him Tom, so Harry refusing to do so must seem like a rejection to him. "But why?"

Dudley glances warningly at Harry. Hopefully, his cousin won't fuck this up.

"I associate a lot of bad things with the name Tom," Harry explains hesitantly.

"Like what?"

"Well...a wizard by the name of Tom Riddle hurt and killed many people who were close to me. Including my parents."

Dudley pushes his teacup to the side and stares at his cousin. "I thought Volm...Volt...Volmard killed them."

"Voldemort," Harry corrects him. "That's the name he gave himself. Most witches and wizards still know him by that name. But his actual name was Tom Riddle."

"Was?" Dudley asks hesitantly. For some reason, he doesn't like the way Harry looks right now. His eyes are colder than usual, and his posture is straighter somehow. If Dudley didn't know any better, he would have said Harry is getting ready to fight.

"Yes, was. He died in a duel with me."

Dudley freezes. His heart rate increases, to the point, that he can hear the blood pumping in his ears.

"You killed someone?" Dudley asks, horrified. His eyes flicker towards the telephone in the kitchen. Should he call the police? Would they even be able to do anything against a wizard? Out of the corner of his eyes, he sees Thomas looking at Harry with big, fearful eyes.

"No, of course not," Harry hastily responds. "He accidentally killed himself with his own killing curse...though, to be honest, I can't bring myself to feel sorry about that. He was responsible for two wars, after all."

Slowly, Dudley's heart rate slows down again, and he exhales sharply. As far as he can tell, Harry is telling the truth. Dudley just overreacted. The Harry he once knew never would have killed anyone, and it looks like Harry hasn't changed in that regard.

Once Dudley calmed down again, he realizes that Harry mentioned a _killing curse_. So there are people out there who can kill others with a single wand movement. Dudley shudders, thinking about all the consequences of such a curse existing.

"Oh, is it really so late already?" Harry asks, looking at his watch. "I've got to go. I've got a meeting in ten minutes."

Dudley nods absently. Good. Harry gave him a lot to think about, and he doubts he'd be able to take much more in right now, anyway.

Harry promises Thomas to come back soon so that they can go to Diagon Alley to buy his school things. While Dudley follows his cousin to this door, Thomas stays behind to read the letter one more time, probably looking at the shopping list more closely than before.

Dudley watches as his cousin opens the door, only to hesitate. Harry turns around and clears his throat. "I...I know that you probably don't have a very high opinion of magic in general, considering everything that happened during our childhood. But I hope you'll find a way to look past that. The wizarding world has a lot of beautiful and amazing things to offer, and it has become a much safer place since Voldemort's death."

Dudley stares at his cousin. At first glance, Harry only looks worried, but there is also something else in his eyes. Dudley isn't sure what it is. Maybe it's uncertainty? Maybe Harry doesn't know how to deal with this situation either. Somehow, that thought is a relief. 

"I'll try my best," Dudley responds.

Harry smiles slightly. "That's all I'm asking for. Oh, and tell Thomas that he can't tell anyone he's a wizard. He will get in trouble with the ministry if he does that. I'll write you a letter once I know when I'll have the time to go to Diagon Alley with you."

And with that, Harry turns around and goes. Dudley closes the door behind him and shakes his head.

Dudley still feels unsure about some things. Like whether he should tell his parents that their grandson is a wizard and how he's supposed to protect Thomas from the dangers of the wizarding world. But Dudley knows that he doesn't have to deal with all of that alone. He can always ask Harry for help. There is simply no way around the fact that his son's life will be very different than he anticipated, but his cousin at least managed to convince him that not all of it has to be bad. As long as he keeps his mind open, everything will turn out fine, hopefully.


End file.
